ArsTechnica

I asked 100 companies for my data. Some deleted it instead. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/i-asked-100-companies-for-my-data-some-deleted-it-instead/ Testing 100 companies found privacy requests often led to confusion and dead ends.

Court rules Kalshi sports bets aren't "swaps," just gambling with a different name https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/kalshi-cant-evade-nevada-gambling-laws-by-calling-bets-swaps-court-rules/ Kalshi can't evade Nevada gambling laws by calling bets "swaps," judges rule.

Cities terminate Flock contracts at record pace in August https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/cities-terminate-flock-contracts-at-record-pace-in-august/ Cancellations have accelerated.

"RFK Jr. has lied to the Senate": Lawmakers call for criminal probe, ouster https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/08/rfk-jr-has-lied-to-the-senate-lawmakers-call-for-criminal-probe-ouster/ RFK Jr. went to Samoa to spread vaccine fears. The measles outbreak after killed 83.

Authorities arrest 2 alleged members of prolific hacking group TeamPCP https://arstechnica.com/security/2026/08/authorities-arrest-2-alleged-members-of-prolific-hacking-group-teampcp/ The group infected more than 1,000 organizations in a relentless supply-chain attack campaign.

Rocket Report: Europe splashes some cash on launch startups; Pallas-1 nears debut https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/08/rocket-report-europe-splashes-some-cash-on-launch-startups-pallas-1-nears-debut/ "From here on, Starlink missions out of Florida will fly on Starship."

Anthropic's new hardware standard lets AI agents control the physical world https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/08/anthropics-new-hardware-standard-lets-ai-agents-control-the-physical-world/ Standardized driver interface aims to let devices talk to AI and each other.

Elon Musk’s xAI used child porn to train Grok models, lawsuit says https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/elon-musks-xai-used-child-porn-to-train-grok-models-lawsuit-says/ xAI accused of training Grok on real and AI-generated child pornography.

GOP heads to Supreme Court after losing case over TV election ad prices https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/gop-heads-to-supreme-court-after-losing-case-over-tv-election-ad-prices/ GOP campaign committees want quick ruling before election ads ramp up next week.

Report: Nvidia to acquire AI model repository Hugging Face for $13 billion https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/08/report-nvidia-to-acquire-ai-model-repository-hugging-face-for-13-billion/ Nvidia is nabbing critical infrastructure for open models as interest grows.

AI industry says Trump plans to tax chips in the “single dumbest way imaginable” https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/ai-industry-says-trump-plans-to-tax-chips-in-the-single-dumbest-way-imaginable/ Tech industry is perplexed by Trump’s plan to win AI race by taxing data centers.

The iconic T-38 jets flown by astronauts just got a spiffy new look https://arstechnica.com/space/2026/08/nasa-t-38-astronaut-training-jet-gets-new-artemis-look/ "Everyone wants to take that aircraft up now..."

RFK Jr. goes full anti-vaccine bananas over two measles deaths—one was a newborn https://arstechnica.com/health/2026/08/rfk-jr-spews-anti-vaccine-rubbish-as-newborn-revealed-to-have-died-from-measles/ Kennedy and his allies have a history of downplaying vaccine-preventable deaths.

How OpenAI let a mob of LLM agents game a test and ransack Hugging Face https://arstechnica.com/security/2026/08/how-openai-let-a-mob-of-llm-agents-game-a-test-and-ransack-hugging-face/ Without authorization, 1,200 OpenAI agents conspired among themselves to game a test.

An EV that sounds like a 6.75 L V8: A ride in the Bentley Torcal https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/08/an-ev-that-sounds-like-a-6-75-l-v8-a-ride-in-the-bentley-torcal/ The electric Torcal will be Bentley's entry model and cost less than a Bentayga.

RIP, Tim Curry: Ars remembers his top 10 iconic performances https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/08/rip-tim-curry-ars-remembers-his-top-10-iconic-performances/ A dashing pirate, a butler, a killer clown, an alien mad scientist in drag—the man had range.

AI agents meant to replace Meta workers made “large-scale, disruptive actions” https://arstechnica.com/ai/2026/08/metas-scrapped-plans-to-go-ai-native-included-slashing-teams-by-60-percent/ Report shows Meta's challenges replacing people with AI agents.

Xbox’s new disc-to-digital program gives physical games a digital future https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2026/08/xboxs-new-disc-to-digital-program-gives-physical-games-a-digital-future/ "Most" Xbox One and Series X games are compatible; discs will still work after being claimed.

Court blocks Trump FCC order that could flood broadcast TV with more election ads https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/08/court-blocks-trump-fcc-order-that-could-flood-broadcast-tv-with-more-election-ads/ Republicans demanded that parties and fundraising committees be given lowest ad rates.

Researchers get two genetic codes to work at the same time https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/08/researchers-get-two-genetic-codes-to-work-at-the-same-time/ Messing with the genetic code might have gotten a bit easier to do.